IFZO @ ARL Symposium "Equivalence of living conditions"

The ARL symposium on 20 November 2019 was entirely devoted to the topic of equivalence of living conditions. In recent years, this objective of spatial planning has also gained importance in other policy fields. Dr. Markus Kerber, State Secretary of the Federal Ministry of the Interior, Building and Home Affairs, reported on the results of the government commission of the same name, which, among other things, would like to examine the initiatives of other ministries for their consequences for different regions by means of an "equivalence check". In addition, the revision of the Atlas of Germany as a tool for illustrating disparities and monitoring political decisions was highlighted.

Following a panel discussion on trends in spatial development, in which it was noted that inequalities within Germany still dominate, four perspectives of spatial planning and regional policy were discussed in parallel sessions: Regionalisation of funding policy, strengthening of municipalities, the role of small and medium-sized towns in rural areas and decentralization strategies. For the Cluster Regional Development and Rural Areas, the symposium confirmed that innovative regional development strategies represent an important field of research not only from a scientific but also from a political point of view.